1893.] ESSAYS. 39 



horizontal position, the leaf is a light green, with a singular graceful- 

 ness in its effect. 



The English is more compact and of slower growth than the native, 

 is stronger in form and color of foliage, which remains ou the tree 

 during winter and until the new leaf puts forth in spring. 



The Purple Beech is a tree that is so strikingly different from 

 other trees that it is always an acquisition in any grounds, and always 

 an object of admiration ; the dark rich color of its leaves, its shapely 

 form and spreading branches, seem to combine the qualities that are 

 unsurpassed. They also prove to be long lived, but thrive best in a 

 rich, retentive soil, which has a marked effect in the foliage. 



The Fern Leaved Beech is also a charming tree, with its leaf so 

 artistically cut, furnished with the greatest abundance, and withal so 

 light and feathery, it makes a round, compact head until old, when it 

 branches out in the greatest profusion. The superb tree at Newport, 

 R. I., is said to be the largest and finest in this country. 



The Birches, Betnla, are an ornamental class of trees, quite distinct 

 in their habits, in shape, and foliage, seeming well adapted for many 

 situations, and very effective in the landscape. 



The Cut-leaved, or European Birch, is the most esteemed, and more 

 are planted than of other sorts. It makes a very graceful tree of up 

 right growth, and requires comparatively little space. 



The Canoe Birch is a native, of robust habit, the trunk often more 

 than two feet in diameter, with thick glossy leaves. 



The Black Birch, the Yellow, and the Gray, are all natives, and 

 when properly planted add many pleasing features to the landscape. 



The INIagnolias form a class of trees, that when in flower are more 

 striking than any . Fifty years ago they were not considered hardy, 

 were usually strawed up in winter, but later years have proved them 

 not only hardy but thrifty, — a most interesting and ornamental family. 



The Magnolia Acuminata is a native of the Western and Southern 

 States, from latitude 44° to the interior of Georgia. As an ornament- 

 al tree nothing can be more magnificent, its stately height — 60 feet — 

 symmetrical form, its long, deep green foliage, its beautiful flowers 

 and unique fruit, resembling a small cucumber, these combinations 

 render it a beautiful tree for the lawn. The largest specimen in this 

 county is in front of the residence of Colonel Wiuslow, in Leicester. 



The Magnolias, both native and exotic, are not as freely planted as 

 they deserve to be ; the Soulangeana, the Conspicua, the Tripetela, the 

 Macrophylla, the Glauca, with a dozen others of more recent intro- 

 duction that promise well, are the finest flowering trees we have. By 



